March is the hardest month to be a teacher.
If you know, you know. It’s the final stretch before spring break, but somehow it feels like the longest, coldest, grayest tunnel with no snacks and questionable Wi-Fi. The kids are stir-crazy. The staff is tired. And you? You’re just trying to make it to Friday without using your “teacher voice” at the grocery store.
So today, right when I needed it most, my boss left me a note. Just a note on an index card, nothing fancy. But what it said? It hit like a hug from someone who actually gets it.
“Had lunch with some ladies today—they said you were a favorite teacher because you mean business. Don’t give up the good fight.”
Cue the lump in the throat.
My boss is a former teacher herself, so she knows what March feels like. She’s survived the “I forgot my homework,” “I didn’t know we had a test,” and “Can we just watch a movie?” era. She knows that by this point in the year, you’ve repeated instructions 97 times and the copier has betrayed you at least twice this week.
That note reminded me that even when I feel like I'm running on caffeine and stubbornness, I'm still showing up in a way that matters. “You mean business” doesn’t sound like a compliment at first—until I realized it means I have standards. I create structure. I care enough to push kids to be better.
I didn’t know I needed those words today. But I did.
So if you're out there wondering if what you’re doing is enough—if you’re tired, tapped out, or just plain over it—I see you. I am you. March is brutal. But you and I - we're still here. Still showing up. Still fighting the good fight.
And someone out there thinks you’re their favorite. Just because you mean business.
